Dead man anchor
The dead man's anchor (also known as the dead man's ground anchor ) is a term used in ropeway technology and the army (especially pioneers ) as well as disaster control (rescue / rescue service).
The dead man's anchor is a special form of the improvised ground anchor . In these areas, the term “ anchor ” refers to fastening technology for ropes that are under tension and have to withstand high tensile loads. There are "ground anchors", "rock anchors", "construction anchors" and the like. If a rope has to be anchored and there is no suitable anchor point available for this anchoring, the dead man's anchor can be used.
A 2 to 3 meter long narrow pit is dug in the ground (similar to a grave), depending on the tensile load to be absorbed, 1 to 3 meters deep, the dead man's pit . In the center of this pit is then a very narrow at right angles rope shaft dug, the bottom of this shaft from the bottom of the previously dug pit steadily at an angle of future abzuspannenden cable to the earth's surface increases. Then a piece of tree the length of the dead man's pit with a corresponding diameter (depending on the tensile load of the rope to be tensioned, for larger loads at least 20 cm) is sunk into the dead man's pit. Before this, however, the rope to be tensioned is laid down on this piece of tree and fixed with rope clamps. If the tree trunk and rope are sunk and the rope runs neatly in the previously excavated rope shaft, the dead man's pit and the rope shaft are backfilled with the previously excavated soil. The whole procedure is similar to a funeral - hence the term dead man's anchor.
Such anchors can absorb enormous tensile forces - subject to restrictions on the strength of the ground - and are used where other options for rope anchoring are not available due to a lack of trees, rocks, etc. It should also be noted that this type of anchoring is a form of temporary anchoring, since over time the buried parts of the rope and the tree trunk lose their static strength due to corrosion and rotting processes. Application examples are: Bringing wood in the mountains using rope crane technology, or vehicle rescue using rope winches, anchoring slacklines .
If there are no trees of the appropriate dimension to which the rope can be tied, you can also help yourself by burying a bundle of several thinner branches, a smaller suitable boulder, or at short notice a spare wheel and similar existing objects. The shovel used (provided it has a sturdy handle) can even be used for smaller loads.
The method can also be used in snow; the ice ax is typically used for short-term securing and emergency rescue in alpinism. See also T-anchor (dead man) .
literature
- Georg PJ Feydt: Salvage and Rescue , Volume 2, p. 96, Verlag Offene Wort, Bonn 1971, ISBN 3-87599-037-4